Merchandise case and distributor



H. S. DOUGLASS MERCHANDISE cAsE AND DISTRIBUTOR Filed May 24. 1925 Patented Dec. 16, 1924. i

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

MERCHANDISE CASE AND DISTRIBUTOR.

Application led May 24, 1923. Serial No. 641,190.

To all whom t may camera.'

Be it known that I, HENRY STEPHEN DoUoLAss, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Statesville, in the county of Iredell and State of North Carolina, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Merchandise Cases Aand Distributors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to display and distributing cabinets, and particularly to a cabinet of the character indicated adapted to contain piles of packages, the lowermost package of each pile being readily removable to permit the successive packages to gravitate to the support of the lowermost package of each tier where it may be conveniently reached and removed by a clerk.

It is a further object of this invention to produce a cabinet of the character indicated having a plurality of partitions, preferably glass, the said partitions being supported at the lower ends and held in spaced relation to one another; the said cabinet having glass panels at the front and rear in order that the contents may be visible from the customers side of a counter, or from the clerks sidev thereof.

A further object of this invention is to 3o provide a cabinet having a hinged rear wall or door which may be opened for the application of mechandise, or the filling of the spaces between the partitions as the stock therein is distributed or sold.

It is a further object of this invention to produce a cabinet of the character indicated which will prove attractive, the presence of the glass partitions and-other features lending to the'artistic effect of the same.

With the foregoing 'and other objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination of partstowbe hereinafter 'more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this application wherein like characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and in 50 which- Figure 1 illustrates a view in elevation of the rear or clerks side of the cabinet;

Figure 2 illustrates a view in elevation of the front or customers side thereof; and

Figure 3 illustrates a sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

In these drawings, denotes an approximately square frame including a base 6. The front of the frame is enclosed by a glass plate 7 in order that the contents of the cabinet may be viewed by the customers.

`The base 6 supports a plurality of blocks 8 that are in spaced relation to one another, and the said blocks are grooved to form seats 9, in which the lower ends of the glass partitions l0 are seated. The grooves are formed approximately centrally of the width of the blocks, and when the partitions are applied thereto, there are shoulders 11 on each side of each partition that constitute supports for the merchandise, as fully shown in the drawing, the merchandise being shown by dotted lines in the several gures.

When the merchandise is stacked in the spaces between the partitions, the lowermost package rests on the shoulders of the blocks, and there is a clearance or space between the lowermost package of each -tier and the upper surface of the base 6; this clearance being suiiicient to permit the hand of the clerk to be inserted under the package when the same is to be removed.

The rear of the casing is provided with a glass door l2 which is hinged to the frame as shown at 13, in order that the said door may be opened to permit a renewal of the supply of merchandise. The door 12 terminates on` a plane above thev plane of the upper surfaces of the blocks 8, and preferably its distancev above the upper surfaces of the blocks is slightly greater than the thickness of packages which are to be dispensed, in order that the clerk may pull the lowermost package of any tier from the case when the same is to be sold.

It will be obvious from an inspection of the drawing that when the lowermost package in any one tier .is removed, the superimposed packa es will descend and the next succeeding pac age will be `arrested by engaging the shoulders on the upper surfaces of the blocks, thus bringing into convenient position for removal the next succeeding package.

The conditions just described will, of course, continue so long as there is merchandise in the compartments of the casing,

and hence the device Will retain the merthe case, blocks on the bottom of the case 10 chandise in order and protect it from being having grooves, glass partitions seated in handled by customers, since the interior of the grooves of the blocks, the upper surfaces the casing is not accessible from the cusof the said blocks constituting shoulders for 5 tomers side of the casing. supporting merchandise stacked between the I claim: partitions, and means for hingedly support- 15 v In a merchandise case and distributor, ang the door` above vthe plane of the upper frame having a base, a glass closure for the surfaces of the blocus.`

front of the case, a glass door at the rear of HENRY S. DOUGLASS. 

